Melissa McQueen

Biography

Melissa McQueen is Executive Director of Transplant Families and works with parents and caregivers of children being listed for or already have received a lifesaving organ transplant to help guide them to support, education, and assistance to help them through this very difficult time. She started the framework for what would become Transplant Families after her son was born with Dilated Cardiomyopathy and subsequently needed a lifesaving heart transplant at 8 months old. After many years of therapy and successful early interventions, Dylan is a healthy, happy, and mostly typical 16-year-old. He runs track, plays football and wrestles for his high school. He won third in state for junior varsity wrestling last year and won 12 medals in the last Transplant Games of America in his age group. Our family can't imagine life without Dylan and are forever grateful to his donor family that made all of this possible. Transplant Families now partners with many organizations all over the United States to help bring awareness to pediatric transplantation.

Melissa believes that education and support bring hope and healing for families. She is currently one of the parents leads in both PARTNER and PARTNER Advanced PCORI projects and believes strongly in the patient centered care model. She is honored to volunteer with the OPTN/UNOS in their Pediatric Committee, Data Advisory Committee, and currently on the OPTN Board of Directors. She helped co-author "What Every Parent Needs to Know". She has also been selected as leadership with Quality Improvement Collaboratives ACTION Learning Network (pediatric cardiac QI based out of Cincinnati Children's Hospital) and Starzl Learning Network (pediatric liver QI based out of University of Pittsburgh Medical Center) to give input and help co-create materials for clinicians and families. She worked on the spearheading committee that helped Donate Life America create National Pediatric Transplant Week (during the last week of every April). She was a part of the planning committee for the NASEM Organ Transplantation and Disability A Workshop. She is the charter chair of the Heart Center Family Advisory Council and Alumni Family Advisory Council at Phoenix Children's Hospital.